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Here are the books that I have had featured in this month’s Fleet Life magazine. For the online version go to http://www.fleetlife.org.uk, click on the online directory and once it is loaded find my page of book reviews on page 6.

I am lucky enough to write book reviews for 2 local magazines, for which I receive no monetary compensation. Approximately 7000 paper editions go out locally and both magazine have on-line versions too.

The August Edition of Fleet Life can be found at http://www.fleetlife.org.uk. Click on the on-line directory, then find my reviews on page 6.

I was brought up in Fleet (Hampshire) and in January 1960 was amongst the first intake into the brand new Court Moor Secondary Modern School. My favourite subject was English and Miss Holt, my first English teacher, always encouraged me to write. Unfortunately, when it was time to leave school, the only careers advice given to us was “Boys get an apprenticeship: Girls become secretaries or nurses, but you don’t really have to bother as you will get married and give up work.” I followed the advice and became an engineering apprentice at the old Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough. Although, given better guidance, I’ve often felt I could have had a career in journalism.

I moved around in my job with the MoD and lived on the South Coast, near Lee-on-the-Solent; Farnham, Surrey; the beautiful village of Chiselborough, near Yeovil in Somerset, and now reside in Highcliffe, Dorset, where we bought a tired bungalow as a retirement project.

2) Is this your first book that you have written?

Yes it is – maybe the first of many?

3) What made you want to write about holidaying in a motorhome?

I’ve always been an avid reader, particularly enjoying memoirs, nostalgia, travel and humour, and for a long time it was an ambition of mine to write something of my own – but what?

Inspiration came whilst driving to Cornwall on our maiden motorhome tour. During torrential rain my windscreen wiper packed up; we endured twenty-four hours of rotten weather cooped up in our confined space with Monty, our faithful Border Terrier, surrounded by dripping wet weather gear and muddy boots; I encountered a wobbly campsite WC pan and temperamental showers, and started to think that buying the motorhome was a terrible mistake. Thankfully the weather improved, but as my wife, Emm, and I got to explore some of Cornwall’s most idyllic and historic places, some for the first time and others we’d been to before, if something could go wrong, it generally did…

I wrote down everything that happened, and when a grumpy old work colleague said he’d only ever stay in hotels, I knew I had a catchy title, Some People Prefer Hotels, and started to write in earnest. The result isn’t simply a travelogue: it’s full of humour, and as well as writing about the places we visited, the farcical situations we found ourselves in and my crotchety observations about our campsite experiences, I also go on a personal inner journey as sentimental old memories – for example of schooldays in Fleet – were triggered off.

4) Can you tell the readers why you and Emm decided to buy a motorhome?

Before we were married we’d go on camping trips in our small tent (it was the only way we could spend the night together!) and, later enjoyed staying in static caravans with our young daughters.

Approaching retirement, Emm had hankered after a holiday home abroad and we’d been tempted with a property in the South of France. Finance didn’t seem a problem as, in the days before the credit crunch, the building society were happy to give us – or rather loan us – enough money to buy it. However, increasing our mortgage by tens of thousands of pounds and extending it for another twenty-five years didn’t seem a good idea. Also, as Emm hates flying, I didn’t think we’d get much use out of it.

But with a motorhome, I reasoned, once we’d both retired, we’d be able to travel to loads of different places in the UK and Europe, as well as revisit many of our favourite haunts.

5) What is the best bit about having a motorhome?

Having the freedom to: –

o Go where we want, stay as long as we want.

o If we particularly like a place, to be able to stay longer.

o If we don’t like a place, to be able to move on to pastures new.

o Being able to make a cup of tea or snack at any time.

o Having our own on-board toilet.

o To be able to take Monty, our beloved Border Terrier, with us.

6) What drawbacks are there to holidaying in a motorhome?

Getting out and about on holiday, have to carefully plan routes and avoid narrow lanes.

Parking can sometimes be difficult or downright impossible where height barriers are installed.

If wet and confined to motorhome for any length of time, can be cramped in such a confined space and difficult to dry wet clothes and muddy boots.

7) Tell us some unusual items you would recommend to take on tour with your motorhome.

For some unknown reason, some campsites we’ve stayed at have had their washbasin plugs missing. Why people pilfer the plugs is beyond me, and it’s really annoying having to shave in a plug-less basin. So it’s a good idea to spend a couple of pounds in the plumber’s merchant and take some plugs with you. Only problem is that if someone sees you with a plug, they are liable to think you are one of the idiotic plug thieves!

Good idea to have an old pair of gloves to use when coiling up the electric hook-up cable. When on grass, even if it hasn’t been raining, I’ve found that the cable was usually wet from the morning dew, as well as muddy from worm casts, and it was really annoying to get my hands wet and slimy.

No matter what, always take your sense of humour!

8) What are your top 3 warning for novice drivers of motorhomes?

Avoid muddy pitches at all costs. It’s a nightmare if the wheels start spinning, sink deep into the mud and you get stuck!

However tempting, don’t try to take shortcuts and drive down narrow lanes. I speak from experience and got hopelessly lost driving on an ever narrowing lane near the Helford River in Cornwall. The bushes and overhanging branches seemed to engulf us, and not daring to carry on we struggled to reverse round a bend and up a hill before we could turn back onto a wider lane.

Don’t trust Sat Navs. There are loads of examples of vans getting wedged between houses in very narrow streets, especially delivery vans in Polperro, and there’s no way you want to find yourself in that situation!

9) How much can you expect to pay for an overnight pitch at a campsite for a motorhome?

It varies enormously depending on the facilities on offer. Some pubs allow motorhomes to overnight on their car parks for free if eating a meal in the pub; otherwise they may charge £5 or so. Certified Locations (CLs), which are usually just a field with a tap and no toilets or showers, typically charge £8-£10 or thereabouts. And at the best camp sites, with superb washroom facilities, swimming pools, bars, etc., it’s possible to pay over £40 per night in the high season, reducing to around £15 – £20 in the low season.

10) In your book, you’ve toured Cornwall, where else have you taken your motorhome since?

We do tend to go to the West Country a lot. But have also been to the Lake District many times where our eldest daughter and granddaughters live. We’ve often been for several weeks, and in the middle of our stay gone off for a few days to do our own thing, chill out and explore on our own. Once we followed Hadrian’s Wall and went to the Beamish Museum which was fantastic.

We’ve also been to France several times and explored Brittany, Normandy (le Mont Saint-Michel was incredible), La Dordogne and Le Val de Loire. Motorhomes are made incredibly welcome in France, parking is easy and there is far less traffic on the roads. We are planning to go again soon and, maybe, I’ll write a book about our French experiences!

In my continuing support of local writers I am pleased to be able to review this book for Nigel who grew up in Fleet. “Some People Prefer Hotels Motorhome Novices tour Cornwall” is about Nigel and Emm’s enthusiasm for a motorhome and the learning curve which goes with being a novice.

With the children left home, they sink their savings in to a motorhome and plan a trip to Cornwall. They return to places they’ve visited in the past and found new places of interest too. Nigel writes with humour and a good dose of grumbling as things go wrong and the rain is determined to make its mark.

They take Monty the dog and visit some lovely places such as Trebah Gardens, St Michael’s Mount, Lands-end. Looe and Polperro. The book includes some wonderful photos and tips from Nigel about how best to navigate and park your own motorhome when visiting many of these sites.

With the trip at a final successful end, Nigel leaves the reader with a set of useful items he suggests you might need to survive your own trip. It’s a great slow paced tour of one of Britain’s most popular counties.

This review is based on a free copy of the book given to me by the author.

Welcome to my second Year of Good Deeds, a challenge I set myself during April 2013. I decided to do at least one Good Deed a day for a whole year.

During my week I’ll also being updating you on My Kindness Challenge which I’m also doing. I read about a new challenge to make the world a better place to live in. “Speak Kind Words, Receive Kind Echoes” see the inspiration on The Kindness blog . During my learning process I’m donating money to charity for my slip-ups to make me work harder to achieve results. I earn no money from any of my book reviews, so having little to spare should focus my mind.

June 9th – My morning of volunteering at school ticks of my Good Deed today. My name’s down to provide the cricket teas this evening too. It tried very hard to rain but the cricket played on, picked up litter and did extra tidying in the clubhouse kitchen while I did the teas.

June 10th – A work morning. Such a lovely sunny day that I spontaneously stopped off on the way home at a countryside site and walked to Odiham castle. It was from here that King John road to Runnymead to sign the famous Magna Carta. Now just a flint ruin it is preserved for those like me who wonder at what it’s seen in the 800 years it’s been standing there. Picked up litter on my walk, I circled round along the Basingstoke canal watching dragonflies dancing round the reeds and crossed the field to the river Whitewater where there is a ford across a small road.

June 11th – Just small good deeds today. Helped out a fellow author with a bit of advice this morning, agreed to read and review another book and of course there was my book review post and all my social media sharing.

Good deeds received; My friend dropped the oldest child home after the college bus broke down in town.

June 13th – A lovely ending to another glorious summer day. The village cricket green is awash with families all enjoying the sun while the lads play cricket. Shared my food and comfy cushion with friends but fell off the kindness wagon, so must donate to my charity pot. Drafted up my book reviews for the August editions of the magazine’s I write for as copy deadlines are near due to the upcoming summer holidays.